Success!!!

I made soap!! okay, well, i didn't really make soap. i made the melt-and-pour kind, where you buy the base already made, then you melt in down, add your own fragrances and colorant, and put it into the mold of your choice. but, still! a few hours ago, there was no orange soap in my house, and now there is! i made soap! :o)

if you think you're seeing things in the soap, it's because you are. i thought it would be weird to put things in the soap as it was hardening, just to see it what it would look like. not sure why. i rummaged around in the kids' toys and found a few very small things that they would never miss (until they see them in the soap!) to put in there. i used way too much fragrance and colorant, though, so i'll need to scale that back next time.

i've got some lye, shortening, and everything else i need to make the REAL kind of soap, though, that needs to cure and set and that will burn your skin off while you're making it if you're not careful. i have a recipe that supposed to produce this really rich, creamy, soap that you can use for the shower. i'm interested to see how that goes!

second thing i made today -- quilt and pillow for shiloh. in the st louis area, it takes fifty years to get to wherever you're going, it seems. you can't just "run out to the store" and grab a thing or two, you'll be gone for half an hour, at least! the kids are always wanting to take pillows and blankets in the van, then they leave them in the van, then they don't have pillows and blankets inside to use, then they find some more, then the next time we leave, they want to take more pillows and blankets in the van... it's a vicious cycle. so, i'm making them both pillows and quilts that STAY.IN. THE.VAN.

i let them choose their fabric. i LOVE this cool flower print that shiloh chose.


(sorry about the lighting -- it looked much better through my camera!)

closer look at the fabric:

and shiloh refused to pass up an opportunity to have her picture taken, of course:


tyler's is a fighter-jet print with a black backing. i'm still learning as far as quilting goes. with shiloh's, and her friend katelyn's that i did awhile back, i did a super-easy wavy line to quilt the front, batting, and back together. i'm going to try a diamond patterned quilt with tyler's. we'll see. i haven't yet ventured into the quilt piecing and designing or anything, yet, though. i just learned how to make mitred corners (although, they're not even really mitred, just made to look that way!).

anyhoo, i'll get better. it was a fun day of making things, though! :o)